US election: Mitt Romney 'playing politics with international diplomacy'

Joe Biden has accused Mitt Romney's presidential campaign of "playing politics with international diplomacy" after an adviser said the Republican candidate would restore "Anglo-Saxon" understanding to US-UK relations.

The US Vice President issued a statement after the remark, made by a member of Mr Romney's foreign policy advisory team during an interview with The Daily Telegraph, prompted a row that threatened to cast a shadow over his visit to London.

Mr Biden said that the claim was "beneath a presidential campaign" and described it as a "feeble attempt by the Romney campaign to score political points".

"Our special relationship with the British is stronger than ever and we are proud to work hand-in-hand with Prime Minister [David] Cameron to confront every major national security challenge we face today," he said.

The adviser to Mr Romney added that the Obama White House "didn't fully appreciate the shared history" between Britain and US, prompting allegations of racial prejudice. Mr Obama's father was born in Africa.

The remarks were seized upon by several Left-leaning commentators in the US. David Axelrod, a senior adviser to Mr Obama, described them as "stunningly offensive".

The Romney campaign swiftly distanced itself from the remark and any implication of racism.

"It's not true," said Andrea Saul, a spokesman. "If anyone said that, they weren't reflecting the views of Governor Romney or anyone inside the campaign," she said.

The adviser said during the interview: "There are not many people around the world who see the world like we do, and the British are a people who do most of the time, who do see the threats we see, do see the opportunities we see, do believe in the free market and individual liberty and has been willing to give money and blood to defend that".

Mitt Romney told US broadcaster NBC there is a "common bond" between America and Britain but said he was "generally unenthusiastic about adopting the comments of people who are unnamed".

"I'm not sure who this person is but I can tell you that we have a very special relationship between the US and Great Britain," he said. "It goes back to our very beginnings - cultural and historical - but I also believe the president understands that so I don't agree with whoever that adviser might be but do agree that we have a very common bond between ourselves and Great Britain. "

Mr Romney arrived in London on Wednesday for meetings with David Cameron and senior ministers on Thursday. He will also meet Ed Miliband and Tony Blair, before attending the Olympics opening ceremony on Friday. He was chief executive of the 2002 Winter Olympics.

Advisers also told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Romney would return Sir Winston Churchill's bust to the White House. The bust, which was displayed in the Oval Office by George W. Bush, was returned to British diplomats by Mr Obama in 2009.